Soap container



Aug. 1 5, 1944. HOGG 2,356,056

SOAP CONTAINER Filed March 51, 1945 v Inventor flea er: ck .Oa'c/kron 16099 A ttorn e y:

Patented Aug. 15, 1944 S-PATENT OFFICE V SOAP CONTAINER.

Frederick DicksonHogg, London, England Application March 31, 1943,Serial No. 481,248 In Great Britain April 7, 1942 4 Claims.

The present invention is concerned primarily with the economical use ofsoap and is applicable to containers for use by oilice workers or otherworkmen or by personnel of the Services such as, for example, the ArmedForces, which containers are intended to accommodate a cake of soap andto be carried to and from a washing establishment.

Perforated metal soap trays are Well known for incorporation in suchcontainers and for association with a wash basin or bath, but suchperforated trays, by virtue of their construction, are generallyunsatisfactory in use in that the moisture on the soap is not adequatelydrained away and, consequently, the soap soon becomes soft resulting inuneconomical use, and excessive dirt deposit on the tray.

The chief object of the present invention is to evolve a soap container,having a minimum area of contact with th soap, thereby not onlypermitting the moisture from the soap to drain away, but at the sametime permitting the soap to quickly dry and harden ready for subsequentuse.

Referring to the drawing:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating a soap containerin accordance with the invention, the container being closed;

Figure 2 is a similar view illustrating the container in an openposition;

Figure 3 is a perspective view illustrating the container in thepreferred position when the soap is being used; and

Figure 4 is a vertical sectional View on the line 4-4 in Figure 3.

In the construction of soap container illustrated by the accompanyingdrawing, the container is formed in two parts, that is to say, anenvelope part and an operative part, the operative part I consisting ofapproximately half the walls of the container and carrying th soapsupporting tray 2, the envelope part 3 constituting the remainder of thesides and carrying the full top and bottom coverings. The parts I and 3are hinged together as at 4, the free extremity of the part I beingshaped to form a spring catch 5 which en ages the adjacent part of thepart 3 when the container is closed, the clip l8 by its resilientengagement with the top and bottom envelope coverings assisting in theretention of the container in its closed condition.

The tray 2 is composed of Wire and is of large mesh thereby ensuring aminimum area of contact with the soap, the tray being shaped accommodatea cake of soap of any normal size. To station the soap in position onthe tray the latter may be fitted with a pair of upstanding small spikes6 which are slidabl on the wire or other members constituting the tray,so that they may be brought into use when the soap is of smalldimensions, thereby enablin a cake of soap to be used of such a smallsize that it would normally be discarded as useless.

The tray is mounted on a supporting member which is pivotally associatedwith the part I at the points I, the tray being formed with arms 8 whichare turned down to engage abutments provided for limiting pivotalmovement, the arms passing through slots 9. Alternatively, the traysupporting member may be non-pivotally associated with the part I inwhich case the tray is pivotally mounted upon its supporting member.

In Figure 2, the operative part of the container has been moved clear ofthe envelope part and consequently the soap can be used in thatposition, although it is preferred that th container shall be stood onedge as shown in Figure 3 and in the sectional view in Figure 4, thetray in such a case occupying an inclined position giving improveddrainage in which position the soap can more conveniently be removed andreplaced. By constructing the container in the manner hereinbeforedescribed, any drippings from the soap will not collect in the containerwhen the soap is replaced on the tray during use, whilst the pivotedarrangement of the tray enables a cake of soap to be easily removed andreplaced.

In order that the soap shall quickly dry after replacement on the tray,and when the container is closed, both the envelope part and operativepart are formed with a series of air-inlet openings l0 through which aircan pass freely over the surface of the soap, the openings beingoppositely arranged. With this arrangement waste due to the soap beinghandled when in a damp or soggy condition is avoided the soap dryingquickly after replacement, whilst if the container is left open untilthe hands are dried any drippings from the soap will have usuallydrained away.

Such a container may be constructed from metal or alternatively from oneof the synthetic resin compositions, such as for example that soldunderthe registered trade-mark Bakelite," the tray being likewise formed ofthe synthetic resin composition if so desired.

In the construction hereinbefore described the t soap supporting devicehas the minimum area of position in which it lies clear of said cover,said cover including parallel top and bottom portions a connecting sideand integral partial ends said second part consisting of a side andintegral partial ends one of which is connected to one of the partialends of the cover part by a vertical hinge, and a reticulated tray forthe reception of the soap carried by said second part, the ar rangementbeing such that when said second part is swung into a position in whichit lies clear of said cover any drippings from the soap will not fallinto said cover.

2. A soap container as claimed in claim 1 having said reticulated traypivotally mounted on the second part of the container, said tray beingmovable into an inclined position to facilitate access to the soap.

3. A soap container as claimed in claim 1 wherein said tray is composedof open mesh wire.

4. A soap container as claimed in claim 1 wherein the oppositelyarranged sides of the second part and cover of the container areperforated to permit of a free passage of air over the surface of thesoap when the container is closed.

FREDERICK DICKSON HOGG.

